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To Do List: Spring Break

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With the students on Spring Break, it’s time to actually get some work done at the studio!

One of these years I will actually take Spring Break off, but for this year, there is much to be done in preparation for the rest of the year.

Anyway, I figured I’d share what I was up to on my “week off”.  What do you do when dancers are off from class?  Share in the comments!

On my to-do list this week:

  • Design this year’s Recital T-Shirt
  • Schedule recital rehearsals
  • Work on summer schedule
  • Hang up ten classes of costumes that just arrived (see below)
  • Re-tape dance floors (one of my least favorite tasks)
  • Finishing up taxes (nothing like last minute… hah)
  • Choreograph
  • Shop for props for my modern class
  • Sew straps onto costumes
  • Order dance shoes

It is Spring Break at your studio too?  What are you up to?

The UPS delivery guy is not a fan of costume time.

 

A Studio Owner’s Prayer for Competition Weekend

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Dear Lord,

Please let my dancers and parents travel safely and on time to the hotel.  Please let the hotel be clean and free of visiting boys sports teams.  I pray for no midnight phone calls from security or parents, no early morning fire alarms and that my wake up call arrives on time.

Please let the venue have ample parking and an area to unload props.  And a few strong men who are willing to carry props to backstage.  May the door guard be understanding that I will be at this event for 14 hours and yes, I understand there is no food or drink in the auditorium but I may kill someone without this coffee.

Please let the competition staff be friendly and organized.  May the event run on time and in order, and backstage be free of chaos.  May the other teams and their parents be as polite as my students and realize that everyone is there to do their best.

May the dressing rooms be well-lit and without windows and not more than one flight of stairs up or down from the stage.  May my male dancer receive a dressing space that isn’t the men’s bathroom.

Please let my CDs work without issue.  May the sound guy (or girl) play them at an appropriate volume and not start the music until the dancers have taken their places.  May there be floor microphones so my tappers’ sounds are not lost in the music.

May the stage be an actual stage with an even and non-slippery surface.  Let there be no dances immediately before mine that litter the stage with powder, paint, excessive glitter or feathers.

May wigs stay on and shoes stay tied.  May tights stay intact and straps secure.

Please let quick changes be swift and easy, may parents fingers be nimble with hair and deft with make-up.  May there be no arguments between mother and daughter.

Let each dancer have an abundance of safety pins, bobby pins and hair spray and that we receive no comments suggesting that we “spray down those fly-aways” or “the dancers should really pin those straps”.

May there be no need for the ice pack, ace bandage, knee brace or extra costume accessories I brought.

Let feet be stretched and arms be sharp.  Let lines be straight and spacing even.  May formation changes be clean and smooth.  May my dances be more powerful on a large stage than they were in the studio.  Let my dances perform better than they did at dress rehearsal.

Please let the judges be fair and impartial, with insightful comments and words of advice.  Let the competition hold true to its decree that it takes off points for inappropriate costuming and song choices and I pray that the awards reflect this.

May my team act like a team and be supportive of each other and share in each other’s victories.  Let the memories they are making be of performing and friendship and not the size of the trophy they won.  Let them know that their value as a dancer is not determined by the awards at the end of the day.

And most of all, let my students dance.

Let them perform to their fullest, enjoy their time on stage and feel accomplished at the end of the day.

Amen.

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This post was in response to “A Dance Mom’s Prayer for Competition Day” over at Your Daily Dance.

Cleaning Dance Routines

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Originally published February 25, 2011

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Polishing, cleaning, fine-tuning… whatever you call it, its necessary before a performance.  I thought I’d share some of my favorite techniques that I’ve picked up over the years as a student and teacher.

The first key is making sure everyone knows the dance – break the routine into 8 counts, count by count and analyze and correct everything from the head placement, arms, feet, legs (bent or straight), and tempo.  If you’re low on time, start at the messiest part of the dance.

Once everyone knows the dance, repetition is key!  One of my teachers would not move on until each section (usually 8 counts) had been performed correctly and cleanly three times… in a row.   If we messed up on the third time, she started over.  She called it her “Rule of Three’s” and used it for only the messiest parts of dances because it can get very frustrating, but yields results.

Read more suggestions after the break!

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SOBuzz: Family & Friends Discount Dilemma

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Just watched a great video from Marie Forleo discussing the “friends and family discount” that could easily apply to any dance studio owner.

When you own your own business, your friends and family often want to support you, but sometimes they are looking for a discount in return.  The message of the video below is whatever you choose, be clear and upfront about your policy.

If you can’t afford to give discounts because you’re just starting up or because you simply value your time, say so (in a polite way of course) and give them the opportunity to choose another dance studio.

Marie offers a script (around 2:14 in the video) to say to your family and friends when you don’t have a discount and I’ve adapted it so it works for dance teachers and studio owners.

“I’m so excited Susie wants to take dance.  Know that I’d never expect you to choose my dance studio because of our relationship.  Before she registers, make sure that our studio is the right fit for you because I don’t offer a friends and family discount.  If you want to move ahead, here are the tuition rates and available classes.”

This gives them an ‘out’ if they were only looking for a handout and let’s you be clear in advance without all the uncomfortableness that would come if you let them know this AFTER she signed up for classes.

What’s your policy for friends and family?  Share in the comments!

Video: Fading Music Using GarageBand

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The Dance Buzz debuts its first video!

If you’ve ever needed to fade a song to fit a time limit or your choreography, the OS X program GarageBand has some great features that make it really easy to do.

GarageBand was made for recording music or making podcasts, but we are going to use it to end a song early and fade it out.  This is one of the easiest and simplest edits to do.

For those who want technical nitty gritty:  I’m using GarageBand ’11 (version 6.0.4) on my MacBook Pro, which is running OS X Lion.

Give me a shoutout in the comments if you found this video helpful or informative – I’d like to do a series of videos showing more complicated edits.  Would you be interested in that?Video transcript and more tips (not included in the video) after the jump:

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Love Playlist for Lyrical / Contemporary Class

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Until Valentine’s Day, I’ll be doing a different “Love” themed playlist every Monday.  This week’s playlist is geared towards lyrical or contemporary dancers.  After I made the playlist, I realized it tended to go to the darker side of love – the heartache or wanting.  All the better to ’emote’ with, I guess!  As my students would say, “this song needs an angsty lyrical face.”

[Links open up in iTunes]

Love Remains The Same – Gavin Rossdale – an uplifting song
My Love – Sia – hauntingly beautiful
She Is Love – Parachute – simple and soft acoustic guitar
A Little More of You – Ashley Chambliss – mellow
Like You Do – Angel Taylor – very “pop” and bubbly
I Will Show You Love – Kendall Payne – updated love ballad
Be Be Your Love – Rachael Yamagata – 3/4 rhythm, bluesy
The Book of Love – Peter Gabriel – beautiful song for all ages
Thinking About You – The Big Scary – slow and steadily tugging on your heartstrings
Fools In Love – Inara George – another 3/4 time!  Lamenting about fools in love
Jar of Hearts – Christina Perri – no need for description, there’s a reason it’s overplayed…
Piece of My Heart – Keri Noble – song about leaving a piece of yourself behind – I used this as a duet for sisters when one of them was a high school senior

New Music Monday: Currently Loving…

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Short music post today – just wanted to share three songs I’ve been loving lately!

Titanium (David Guetta feat. Sia) – My go-to warm up songs for my older students.  I’ve been using this in tap and jazz classes as it has a nice steady beat and hasn’t been overplayed on the radio yet.

Timshel (Mumford & Sons) – This is a hauntingly beautiful piece that I’ve been using in my lyrical/contemporary classes.  Easy to put emotion into it.

I’m In Here Piano/Vocal Version (Sia) – I can’t help it – I love Sia’s voice.  You might recognize her from “Breathe Me” a few years ago.  I just love the different sound she has. I’ve been using this song in lyrical and jazz class for a cool down.

Playlist Update for Fall 2011

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Now that the studio is open and I’m getting back into the swing of things, I updated some of my playlists for class and wanted to share my favorite new songs with you!  Most of these are from the Top 40 and some are old favorites, but hopefully they might inspire you or give you something new for the season!

 

Not offered on iTunes:
Pumped Up Kicks (RLYNX Remix) – Foster The People
Party On The Floor – DJ Earworm Remix – check out his other remixes too!

Two New Favorite Free iPhone Apps!

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Check out these two iPhone apps – the only thing you will need is an iPhone or iPod touch. Perhaps similar apps are out there for Blackberry and other phone users – there is always hope.

As a tap dance teacher, Metronome by Marketwall.com has been invaluable for those times when I need a steady beat, but can’t find the right tempo music or don’t want to clap my hands raw. It mimics a real metronome (which brings back nostalgia of my old piano lessons) and can tick tock its way from 1 beats per minute (why you would ever need that slow is beyond me) to 210bpm. If you have a stereo system with an audio headphone jack, you’re in business! It is a little tricky to accurately slide the little metronome weight thing (does that have a name?), but otherwise I am happy. It has a different tone for the downbeat of the measure, which you can change to 2/4, 3/4 or 4/4 timing.

There are a few other apps that do the same thing, but since I am pretty happy with the current one, I haven’t tried any of the other options. Comments are welcome if you have!

My second new favorite app is BPM by CHEEBOW. This handy little tool helps you determine the beats per minute in any song you can tap your finger to. It registers the BPM just after 3 taps and if you keep tapping, it will average your speed so even if you have an unsteady finger, it will give you a fairly accurate reading. I have used this to organize my dance class playlists by tempo, so I no longer go crazy trying to find a faster or slower song in the middle of class. You can add the BPM to your songs in iTunes under the “Get Info” option.

Share your favorite ‘apps’ in the comments!


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